Calvin (5/10/01)

3:19

Paul moves even more directly to addressing the Jews, for he knows their thinking, that the negative descriptions of the Law were to be applied to the Gentiles. So, he points out that the Law was intended mostly to instruct God's chosen people, and that descriptions of the Gentiles within that Law were clearly incidentals. Being, then, as the Law was written to direct them, their failure to comply brought that much greater a condemnation before the court of God. By the Law, Paul is including all of the Old Testament. The phrase regarding the stopping of every mouth is taken from legal proceedings, wherein the defendant is so convicted by the evidence being prosecuted against him that he ceases from even attempting to speak in his own defense, and simply awaits the sentence. So, also, in Job 40:4 - recognizing that nothing he could say would have any weight in the eyes of God, he ceases from all attempts at a defense, and lays himself, as it were, at the mercy of the court. Footnote: Points out that the use of every mouth, and all the world is intended to include the Jews, who would have been exempting themselves from the descriptions of the previous quotations, rather than the Gentiles. This does not, however, suggest that the Gentiles were not included.

3:20

The works of the Law are brought up, because any merit that may come from works must depend on a law that promises reward for compliance. However, since none has ever been capable of complying with the law God established, it holds that no work of man will be of merit to his salvation. When men try to restrict this passage to discussions of the ceremonial laws, they argue from the fact that Paul has specifically referred to circumcision both here and elsewhere in his writings. But circumcision stands as a symbol of hypocrisy, the external mask by which the self-righteous attempts to justify himself. That Paul addresses the wider scope of the Law should be sufficiently clear by the whole of his letters, and by the dispute that occurred in Jerusalem. It is also clear from the line of reasoning he has followed in this current discussion. So, he points out that justification, requiring complete adherence to the Law, and guilt, the verdict upon every man, cannot coexist. The Law cannot confer righteousness, for it serves to convict us of our sins. "Life and death proceed not from the same fountain." This holds true because we realize that when a man is shown his sins, his hope of salvation is cut off. Certainly, the Law teaches us of righteousness by clearly depicting our sins to us, but it is insufficient to bring us to that righteousness because of our deep depravity. Further, note that there is no halfway measure, there is no semi-righteousness wherein works serve to ameliorate our condition. It's a black and white situation.

 

 

Matthew Henry (5/10/01)

3:19

Neither the deeds of the first law of innocence, nor those of natural law, nor those of ceremonial law, nor those of moral law can serve to justify us. Had that original law been kept entire, then indeed, the law would have been our righteousness, but having once failed of that law, no future compliance could put aside our guilt. The Pharisees sought to be justified by their works (Lk 18:11-12 - I don't do this, I do that, I do the other), but the guilt of man shows that such justification cannot work, and the glory of God shows that faith's justification cannot fail. It ought to be clear that no lawbreaker can appeal to the law broken as justification for his action. He cannot be cleared by that which he has transgressed. Paul has provided a list of convictions from God, now he brings home that these convictions apply all the more to those who prided themselves in being under the law. The Jews boasted of this condition, and had their confidence in that law, but that law, Paul points out, condemns them just as much as any other. God stops up the mouths both of the justified - humbled by conviction, and of the condemned - silenced by lack of defensible position. (Jude 15 - He will convict the ungodly of their deeds, ways, and words against Him. Mt 22:12 - That conviction will leave the condemned speechless. Ps 107:42 - What makes the righteous glad will also shut the mouths of the unrighteous.) All the world is shown guilty (1Jn 5:19 - The world lies in the power of the evil one. Eph 2:3 - We, too, were once children of wrath, just like everybody else.) Those who stand on their own actions for justification will surely fall. As all are guilty, so all require another righteousness to appear before the all-seeing Judge. Ro 3:23 points out that we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, we have come up short as the archer does, as the runner does; as not only failing to win, but losing most profoundly. We have come short of glorifying God, which was our primary duty in creation. Instead, we have dishonored Him, we who alone among creation were able to glorify Him. We have come short of glorying before God, our sin having robbed us of any right to boast of ourselves to Him. Before men, we may find that about which to boast, but God, who cannot bear to look upon our sinfulness, cannot bear such false boasting. We have come short of being glorified by God, failing of justification and acceptance with Him, failing to attain to the image of God upon ourselves that comes of sanctification, failing of any hope of being with God in heaven to our glory. The way of innocence is shut off for us, the cherub with his flaming sword still blocks us from the tree of life.

3:20

The law is the firm rule of right, and as such can not but convict and condemn us. That which convicts cannot also justify; what wounds cannot cure. The right use of the law is to show us where we have turned aside from the righteous path, and so Paul uses it. (Ro 7:9 - The commandment showed me my sinfulness, and so I died.) Since man is universally sinful, he cannot be justified by this law. (Ge 6:3 - The LORD will not strive with man forever. Job 14:4 - We cannot make the unclean clean.) As all works proceed from our fleshly nature, they cannot be but stained by that nature. As a people, they remained a holy nation, but as before God, their deeds could not possibly justify them. (Ps 143:2b - In God's sight, no living man is righteous.)

 

 

Adam Clarke (5/11/01)

3:19

The law doesn't refer to the Law, in this case, as none of the quotes Paul has used come from that portion of Scripture. Rather, it must be taken as referring either to the whole of Old Testament Scripture, or to the natural law known to both Jew and Gentile. In any case, the point is made that the whole world is convicted before God as having sinned against the law, and so, they stand silent before him without defense.

3:20

As the law is the rule of right, it serves to expose to us how we have deviated from the right, much as a straightedge will expose the deviation of an irregular surface from the plane. Showing us our sinfulness, it reveals the due sentence, and so, cannot justify us.

 

 

Barnes' Notes (5/11/01)

3:19

It is admitted by all that the precepts of the law apply only to those governed by that law. The point is made to prevent the Jews from evading the conviction brought by the previous quotes, what has been said in those verses is to apply to those governed by the Book. The argument presented from the beginning of the letter until now has been sufficient to shut off every attempt at defense by either Jew or Gentile. (Job 5:15-16 - He saves the poor from the mighty, and gives hope to the helpless. So unrighteousness must shut its mouth. Ps 107:42 - The upright see God's ways and are glad, but all unrighteousness shuts its mouth.) He has shown the Gentiles to be guilty by their own deeds, and by their own admission. The Jews are shown to be equally guilty by the words of their own book of the Law. Thus, the entirety of the preceding argument leaves us clear that man is universally guilty before God, 'where there is not some scheme contemplating forgiveness.' This is what man would forever be, without God's plan for justification. The Law has not made the guilty, but rather proved them guilty. The guilt so proved goes beyond the basic obligation to punish. Rather, it is a guilt proved to be deserved by the one convicted, he being unable to vindicate himself of the charges made. Paul has shown that guilt cannot exist except the law be present, and that violation of that law must be charged, and the lawbreaker held responsible for guilt to apply.

3:20

The law here applies to moral law, whether that of nature, reason, or revealed religion. In no case could man be shown to have come into obedience with the moral law that ruled him. The pagans had failed to obey what they knew to be right, and so had the Jews. This is no discussion of compliance with rites and ceremonies, but rather with the compliance of the heart. As all have been shown to fail, so the ability of moral law to justify man has also been shown to fail. Not one human being can be found so justified as righteous, as none has ever maintained complete obedience to the law, and so shown himself entitled to its promised rewards. Far from justifying us, applying the measure of the law to ourselves will serve only to reveal how far from that measure we stand. Man may think himself righteous until he looks at himself honestly in the light of law. This will serve to show him how far he is from being justified, and the more faithfully the Law is preached, the more it will condemn the sinner, and lead him to see his need for salvation by other means.

 

 

Wycliffe (5/11/01)

3:19

The law encompassing the whole of the OT, speaks to all who take its message seriously - both Jew and Gentile. Its message suffices to shut off every defense and make every person accountable before God.

3:20

Here, Paul returns to the narrower definition of Mosaic law, showing that they in no way suffice to bring acquittal of the charges made. Rather, the understanding of the law brings awareness that our actions are due to what we are, and that what we are is judged worthy of death by that law. To bring one to recognition of this fact is a great task. 'Since Paul assigns to the Law such a task, he surely does not minimize the Law.'

 

 

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown (5/11/01)

3:19

The law, indicating the whole of Scripture, is regarded as a rule of duty (Jn 10:34 - Has it not been written in your Law…). As it applies to those ruled by it, it clearly applies to the Jews. Thus, every mouth that would attempt self-justification is stopped by the evidence, and all stand condemned before the bar of God's judgment.

3:20

So, the conclusion of Paul's reasoning. Compliance to the requirements of the law will not cause any man to be treated as righteous before the bar (Ps 143:2 - For in His sight no man living is righteous), because the Law has served to bring us knowledge of our sin. (Ro 4:15 - The law brings wrath, inasmuch as violation cannot exist where the law doesn't exist. Ro 7:7 - Yet, the Law is not sin itself, but rather makes sin known to us. 1Jn 3:4b - Sin is lawlessness.) Here is the answer to the questions regarding the worth of circumcision and the advantage of the Jew. Whereas so many point to the priesthood and the temple as the pinnacles of Jewish glory, Paul points to the 'Oracles of God' as the crown jewel of the ancient Church. Issues of free will vs. God's will, of salvation by grace vs. salvation by works ever cloud man's view, being deemed as inconsistent by such as cannot accept what reason cannot wrap itself around. But the foundation remains firm on the ground that God cannot lie, and that those who take grace as license to sin are justly damned by their actions. "Only when these humiliating conclusions are accepted and felt, [the universal nature of disorder, guilt, and condemnation, and the impossibility of self-justification,] are we in a condition to appreciate and embrace the Grace of the Gospel."

 

 

New Thoughts (5/12/01)

How well I remember when my then-girlfriend had first returned to the Lord, and came to tell me of my need. Oh! How little did I want to hear this! Oh! How good I thought myself. "What? I'm not a good enough guy for you? Am I not good and kind and loving?" And contemplation really didn't do anything to change that view of myself, for contemplation alone cannot pierce the heart's deceptions. I thought I was doing ok. I didn't commit any major crimes, nothing that would really hurt anybody. And even reading the Bible was insufficient to put aside these feelings of sufficiency. Surprising, isn't it? I could look at all that that fine Book had to say, and still come away from it thinking I was doing just fine. Going to church didn't suffice to change that view. No. One could easily survive that environment with no more than a thin mask on. Put up the front, put up the defenses. Enjoy the music, be amused by the antics, and glaze over at the preaching. This is what it was about for me. This was a small tax I needed to pay on my time to make my girlfriend my wife. Small price, that. But when God finally becomes real (as if He was ever anything but real), when it finally sinks in that this is no game, then things start to change a bit. No, I still wasn't ready to admit that I wasn't what I'd thought myself to be. But, He had my attention. And He was kind enough to send the Holy Spirit to this job site. The truth of His Word began to sink in ever so slowly. And I do mean slowly. It's taken years to penetrate through the walls I'd built around myself, and is doubtless still breaking through others I haven't noticed yet.

What turned the corner for me was when I moved from reading the Bible to really studying the Bible. I mean, really trying to grasp all I could of what was being said in its pages. Oh, the change in perspective when I really began digging into 1John! Here was the apostle of love, wasn't all he ever said about love? You bet. But what tough love! It seemed I was constantly being kicked about as I worked through his letter. Thanks be to God that He inspired John to balance the tests with assurances, else all hope would have been dashed. Indeed, when I'd finally decided to understand that Law, instead of just reading the surface of it, it proved, as Mr. Clarke points out, to be a straightedge exposing all my crookedness. How quickly self-righteousness fades away when put to the test! How firmly one is driven to his spiritual knees, when once he sees that all his efforts are as naught before the Righteous One. When once God gets us to look honestly at ourselves, we cannot but be truly humbled. Pride may not be removed, but it will ever more be suspect when it rises within us. He may not bring us to perfection in this lifetime, in fact, I rather doubt He will. But He most assuredly will keep us ever mindful of the perfection we haven't reached yet, and ever hungry to get there.

Yet, there remains a further realization. The first step towards salvation came with the realization that we weren't as secure in our goodness as we thought. When we recognized our failures, immediately we saw the need for change. But what did we do with that? What did I do? Typical man that I am, I began trying to fix it. I began trying to be a better person. But I was still doing it on my strength. I was bound and determined to redeem myself in His sight. How hard it is to come to the realization that having once failed of that law, no future compliance could put aside our guilt, as Mr. Henry points out. How hard it is to stop leaning on our own efforts, to come to the place where we stop working and allow God to be God. "Only when these humiliating conclusions are accepted and felt, [the universal nature of disorder, guilt, and condemnation, and the impossibility of self-justification,] are we in a condition to appreciate and embrace the Grace of the Gospel." Thus, as we've seen before, the full understanding of the Law; of its purpose, of its full import, and of its limitations: the realization that the Law properly understood will show itself an unattainable goal in our own power, this is a necessary knowledge for us. We can't attain to God's kingdom without that knowledge, because we'll never truly seek the one path that leads there until we gain that knowledge. And, as I begin to see it now, even the epignosis degree of knowing won't suffice. It can bring us a fair distance to know, it can change us to the point of seeking. But I begin to feel that even this requires a further step, it requires the stopping to meditate, to really dwell on what we've come to know. It requires allowing the Holy Spirit to bring the full flower of the Truth to mind. This is why change and repentance require a stopping from work, a resting in the Lord. Not only is He the only one that can bring true change, but we need that quietness in our lives to hear what the Spirit is saying. It's not so much the rest of downtime that we need, but the quietness. We've lost the contemplative moment in the business of our daily mess, ever moving from task to task to task. At home, at work, at church, even at play, we've become too busy to absorb the significance of anything. God help us.

Lord, I pray that You would teach me to come to those stopping points. I pray that You would help me to move even beyond what has been coming from these times of study, from the new times of teaching. I pray that You would move me to a new place of thoughtfulness. I pray this for my family, for we've all become addicted to busyness. Oh, we have our day of rest on Sunday, but it's a hollow thing, a stopping in exhaustion, rather than a stopping in thought. Help us, oh Lord, to stop and not just smell the roses, but think about them a bit. Help us to cease from gathering more information, and absorb and understand all that You have already told us. Help us, as a church, sweet Jesus, to stop doing, doing, doing; to put aside our programs and agendas, and allow You to lead in the joyful dance of this life. After all, if You don't lead, we'll do no more than step on each others' feet. Give our leadership the space to stop and listen to You. Lord, give them a space to step aside from the constant pressure of the shepherd. Give them a time of retreat, to rest in You, to lie back and listen joyfully to Your voice, to return to the joy of first love.